News and notes from each week of NASCAR racing using a Las Vegas oddsmaking perspective

Monday, October 14, 2013

Driver Tale of the Tape at Talladega: 2013 Camping World RV Sales 500

Dale Earnhardt Jr has 5 Talladega wins, but the last came in 2004

1 - Matt Kenseth (No. 20 Home Depot “Let’s Do This” Toyota)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 110.7

2013 Rundown

·Seven wins, nine top fives, 17 top 10s; two poles

·Average finish of 12.4

·Led 22 races for 1,402 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·One win, five top fives, nine top 10s

·Average finish of 17.6 in 27 races

·Series-best Average Running Position of 14.1

·Series-best Driver Rating of 91.5

·59 Fastest Laps Run, 11th-most

·5,142 Green Flag Passes, seventh-most

·Series-high 2,110 Laps in the Top 15 (65.2%)

·3,952 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), third-most

2 - Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 107.9

2013 Rundown

·Five wins, 13 top fives, 20 top 10s; two poles

·Average finish of 11.4

·Led 19 races for 1,559 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Two wins, six top fives, 10 top 10s; one pole

·Average finish of 17.1 in 23 races

·Average Running Position of 17.5, 11th-best

·Driver Rating of 83.1, 10th-best

·1,586 Laps in the Top 15 (49.0%), fifth-most

·3,006 Quality Passes, sixth-most

3 - Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Jimmy John's Chevrolet)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 94.2

2013 Rundown

·Three wins, eight top fives, 17 top 10s; one pole

·Average finish of 11.8

·Led 10 races for 191 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·One win, six top fives, 10 top 10s; one pole

·Average finish of 16.4 in 25 races

·Average Running Position of 19.0, 21st-best

·Driver Rating of 77.0, 20th-best

·73 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most

·5,404 Green Flag Passes, fifth-most

·1,412 Laps in the Top 15 (43.6%), 11th-most

·2,930 Quality Passes, seventh-most

4 - Jeff Gordon (No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 92.2

2013 Rundown

·Seven top fives, 16 top 10s; two poles

·Average finish of 14.2

·Led 14 races for 304 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Six wins, 15 top fives, 19 top 10s; three poles

·Average finish of 16.3 in 41 races

·Average Running Position of 18.4, 18th-best

·Driver Rating of 81.8, 11th-best

·1,514 Laps in the Top 15 (46.8%), eighth-most

·2,666 Quality Passes, 12th-most

5 - Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M's Halloween Toyota)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 102.5

2013 Rundown

·Four wins, 15 top fives, 19 top 10s; three poles

·Average finish of 13.2

·Led 17 races for 1,204 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·One win, three top fives, four top 10s

·Average finish of 22.9 in 17 races

·Average Running Position of 19.1, 22nd-best

·Driver Rating of 79.9, 16th-best

·78 Fastest Laps Run, second-most

·4,976 Green Flag Passes, ninth-most

·1,561 Laps in the Top 15 (48.2%), sixth-most

·3,146 Quality Passes, fifth-most

6 - Greg Biffle (No. 16 Scotch Blue Ford)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 83.1

2013 Rundown

·One win, four top fives, 12 top 10s

·Average finish of 14.5

·Led 4 races for 117 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Two top fives, five top 10s

·Average finish of 19.9 in 21 races

·Average Running Position of 21.4, 28th-best

·Driver Rating of 73.7, 24th-best

·63 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most

7 - Kurt Busch (No. 78 Furniture Row/Wonder Bread Chevrolet)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 94.4

2013 Rundown

·10 top fives, 15 top 10s; one pole

·Average finish of 14.5

·Led 13 races for 441 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Six top fives, 13 top 10s

·Average finish of 16.7 in 25 races

·Average Running Position of 15.1, third-best

·Driver Rating of 86.8, fifth-best

·5,819 Green Flag Passes, second-most

·2,005 Laps in the Top 15 (62.0%), second-most

·4,117 Quality Passes, second-most

8 - Clint Bowyer (No. 15 5-hour ENERGY Toyota)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 93.1

2013 Rundown

·Eight top fives, 15 top 10s

·Average finish of 12.3

·Led 9 races for 292 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Two wins, four top fives, seven top 10s

·Average finish of 16.3 in 15 races

·Average Running Position of 21.2, 27th-best

·Driver Rating of 78.9, 18th-best

·75 Fastest Laps Run, third-most

9 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 Mountain Dew / Xbox One Chevrolet)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 96.1

2013 Rundown

·Six top fives, 17 top 10s; two poles

·Average finish of 14.1

·Led 12 races for 274 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Five wins, nine top fives, 13 top 10s

·Average finish of 15.1 in 27 races

·Average Running Position of 15.1, second-best

·Driver Rating of 89.9, second-best

·73 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most

·5,551 Green Flag Passes, fourth-most

·Average Green Flag Speed of 192.891 mph, sixth-fastest

·1,919 Laps in the Top 15 (59.3%), third-most

·3,732 Quality Passes, fourth-most

10 - Carl Edwards (No. 99 Subway Ford)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 93.6

2013 Rundown

·Two wins, nine top fives, 16 top 10s; one pole

·Average finish of 12.6

·Led 13 races for 449 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Two top fives, five top 10s

·Average finish of 20.8 in 18 races

·Average Running Position of 24.0, 39th-best

·Driver Rating of 67.3, 34th-best

·67 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most

11 - Joey Logano (No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 90.6

2013 Rundown

·One win, 10 top fives, 16 top 10s; two poles

·Average finish of 14.8

·Led 12 races for 282 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Two top fives, four top 10s

·Average finish of 20.0 in nine races

·Average Running Position of 17.8, 14th-best

·Driver Rating of 79.0, 17th-best

·Average Green Flag Speed of 192.865 mph, eighth-fastest

12 - Ryan Newman (No. 39 WIX Filters Chevrolet)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 82.4

2013 Rundown

·One win, six top fives, 15 top 10s; two poles

·Average finish of 15.9

·Led 14 races for 95 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Four top fives, eight top 10s

·Average finish of 22.2 in 23 races

·Average Running Position of 21.6, 30th-best

·Driver Rating of 70.7, 28th-best

13 - Kasey Kahne (No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet)

·Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 98.4

2013 Rundown

·Two wins, nine top fives, 12 top 10s

·Average finish of 16.1

·Led 8 races for 635 laps

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

·Three top fives, four top 10s; one pole

·Average finish of 21.5 in 19 races

·Average Running Position of 21.1, 26th-best

·Driver Rating of 71.2, 27th-best

·5,188 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most

·2,818 Quality Passes, ninth-most

Chase Contenders

The Top 13

Following Race 31 of 36 / Chase Race #5

Rank Season

Last Driver

Driver

Points

Wins

Poles

Week

Rating

1. Matt Kenseth

2,225

7

2

1

110.7

2. Jimmie Johnson

2,221

5

2

2

107.9

3. Kevin Harvick

2,196

3

1

3

94.2

4. Jeff Gordon

2,189

0

2

4

92.2

5. Kyle Busch

2,188

4

3

5

102.5

6. Greg Biffle

2,167

1

0

6

83.1

7. Kurt Busch

2,166

0

1

7

94.4

8. Clint Bowyer

2,162

0

0

9

93.1

9. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

2,159

0

2

8

96.1

10. Carl Edwards

2,158

2

1

11

93.6

11. Joey Logano

2,150

1

2

10

90.6

12. Ryan Newman

2,147

1

2

12

82.4

13. Kasey Kahne

2,144

2

0

13

98.4

ADDITIONAL DRIVERS

14. Brad Keselowski

874

34. J.J. Yeley

401

15. Jamie McMurray

872

35. Bobby Labonte

363

16. Martin Truex Jr.

828

36. David Stremme

362

17. Paul Menard

825

37. Timmy Hill

177

18. Aric Almirola

796

38. Michael McDowell

148

19. Marcos Ambrose

783

39. Michael Waltrip

102

20. Jeff Burton

780

40. Scott Speed

99

21. Juan Pablo Montoya

772

41. Ken Schrader

92

22. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

772

42. Terry Labonte

77

23. Casey Mears

634

43. Boris Said

48

24. Denny Hamlin

608

44. Ron Fellows

31

25. Tony Stewart

594

45. Alex Kennedy

21

26. David Ragan

565

46. Justin Marks

14

27. Mark Martin

554

47. Scott Riggs

11

28. Danica Patrick

554

48. Victor Gonzalez Jr

10

29. David Gilliland

534

49. Brian Keselowski

9

30. Dave Blaney

472

50. Tomy Drissi

8

31. Travis Kvapil

429

51. Jacques Villeneuve

3

32. David Reutimann

420

52. Jason Leffler

1

33. AJ Allmendinger

402

Note: The first 26 races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season determine which 12 drivers qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, contested over the final 10 races of the season. After race No. 26, the top 10 earn a berth in the Chase. Spots 11 and 12 – the Wild Cards – will go to those drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins, provided they are in the top 20.

2016 Rundown· Four wins, 17 top fives, 24 top 10s,· Led 1378 laps· Average Finish of 11.6Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:· One win, two top fives, four top 10s· Average finish of 21.091, 23rd-best· Average Running Position of 14.792, 13th-best· Driver Rating of 95.5, eighth-best· 1962 Laps in the Top 15 (66.8), eighth-most· 447 Quality Passes, 10th-most